


A Team Doesn't Equal A Relationship

by Nuwandalz



Series: We're Not A Team (We're A Work In Progress) [1]
Category: Marvel Avengers Movies Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Developing Relationships, Established Relationship, Foursome - M/M/M/M, Implied Relationships, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-08-03
Updated: 2012-08-03
Packaged: 2017-11-11 08:14:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/476482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nuwandalz/pseuds/Nuwandalz
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This was a team building exercise that none of them were prepared for - learning to sleep together in the one bed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Team Doesn't Equal A Relationship

**Author's Note:**

> Beta by Avenging-Gleefully.
> 
> All other mistakes are my own.

They all don't sleep in the same bed. It bothers Steve, a fact Tony isn't all that surprised to learn considering it's _Steve_. But he's a little surprised that Bucky sides with Bruce on the matter, at least until he realizes that Bucky is a possessive little shit when it comes to Steve and well, Tony can identify with that a little - sometimes he doesn't want anyone else touching Bruce. Bruce on the other hand doesn't want anyone in his bed, doesn't want anyone trying to get into his bed and, most frustratingly for Tony, doesn't want to be in someone else's bed. 

Tony can't say he really cares too much because sleeping with bed partners isn't a concept he's wasted time thinking about. It was nice to wake up to Pepper sometimes, but that had more to do with the fact that they were both hardworking, busy people with insomnia habits and was the only time he got to see the real Pep, all soft and warm features, messy hair. He's seen Steve, Bucky and Bruce unguarded lots of times without the aid of a bed and dull morning light. When he says as much to Steve, Steve just frowns, a disappointed look that Tony tries really hard not to associate with his father. Jesus.

He blames Steve for what he ends up doing next, offering himself up as a sparring partner for Bucky so he can get a chance to set the plan in motion. Bucky needs to be on his side so it's not an even split. Stupid goddamn Steve.

Turns out, all he had to do was tell Bucky that it was upsetting Steve. When Bucky crowds Steve in the kitchen one evening, demanding to know if it's true, Steve stammers out the confirmation and Tony hides his glee.

\--

  


The thing is, it's a great theory but not as easy to implement in practice. Tony decides they should just try sleeping without Bruce at first because he honestly isn't used to two bodies in bed when sex isn't involved and Bucky might have agreed but he's still giving Tony subtle death glares. Steve just frowns some more, guilty at leaving Bruce alone and from there the first night is just awkward and uncomfortable that he's pretty sure nobody really sleeps.

Steve gets the middle, Bucky's metal arm is thrown across Steve's chest like armour, his eyes meeting Tony's over the expanse of Steve's throat as if daring him to a challenge. Tony smirks back because as a defense it works well and he hooks a leg over Steve's pointedly.

Steve sighs. Loudly. "This might be a bad idea," Steve says quietly, staring up at the ceiling.

"We're all good Cap, aren't we?" Tony replies confidently, looking to Bucky to see the next move.

"Actually, Stark, I'm thinkin' I agree wit--"

"You had no trouble shoving your tongue down my throat when we started this fourway, Brooklyn."

"Hey! That night involved a lot of drinking--"  
"You saying you were coerced? Rogers, are you hearing this?"

"Could you two please just stop?" Steve's voice was quiet, tired. It shut them both up pretty quickly. Steve seems surprised at first, obviously having not expected the silence. "Look," he starts, hesitating. "I just thought, maybe, if we were doing this properly, then we should be together, to start and end the day as a team."

"I'm not sure if I prefer 'team' to 'relationship' or not..."

"Stark!"

"Tony..."

"Sorry, sorry. You were saying?"

Another sigh, this one more exasperated. "I don't think this is going to work. With the four of us. Not even the three of us."

Tony feels the rejection cut deep but he smiles to cover it up. He leans in and drops a quick kiss to the corner of Steve's mouth, reaches out to squeeze Bucky's ass and then slips out of the bed.

"All you had to do was say so, Cap."

\--

Tony finds Bruce down in the lab, a cotton-ball pressed to his elbow and the faint red marks over his bicep in a line.

"Hey, I thought we agreed you wouldn't be taking blood by yourself."

Bruce doesn't even startle. "You were busy," Bruce answers calmly. "And I know how to do this."

Tony steps in close, reaching out to check the needle mark by removing the cotton and immediately replaces it as the blood wells up again. He feels guilty for not being down here, irritated that Steve and Bucky don't really want him anymore and annoyed that he's upset by it.

"Let me take over."

"It's fine, Tony."

"Shut up."

Bruce lets Tony manage the rest, sitting quietly. Tony wants to apologize but he's never been good at that.

"What happened?" Bruce asks mildly, giving Tony plenty of reason to be vague with his answer.

"I think Steve and Barnes just broke up with us."

"With you," Bruce corrects without missing a beat.

"They kissed you too."

"I don't think that makes a relationship."

"They came from the 40's, Bruce. Kissing is like signing a contract for them."

"I really don't think th--"

"Blowjobs were involved. That's equal to, what, marriage? Did they even have blowjobs back then? Steve looked like he'd never a mouth around his dick before."

"He was probably wondering what your father would think."

Tony almost chokes. Bruce winces then shakes his head. "I'm sorry, that was very thoughtless of me."

"I forgot how much of a bitch you could be," Tony mutters, adjusting some of the equipment for Bruce. He pauses, shooting a look to Bruce and doesn't find the guilt he was expecting. "You were jealous," Tony accuses, eyebrows raised.

"I'm not jealous."

"You are."

"Maybe. But it doesn't matter."

"Who decided that?"

"Tony, I don't want to have this conversation." Bruce throws the cotton ball away and then starts labelling the vials in his messy scrawl. "I'm sorry about Steve and Bucky."

Tony shrugs, looking away for a moment. "Their loss. I give great head."

"I'm sure you do."

Drumming his fingers in irritation against the desk, Tony just watches Bruce work.

"This is your fault you know. We were trying to practice sleeping together so the three of us could show you it was a good idea. Better with four. We'd need a bigger bed though. Probably should have thought of that beforehand. Good thing Barnes clings otherwise someone wouldn't have fit. Rogers is a fucking tree."

"It was my fault?" Bruce doesn't even look up, just continues working as if this whole conversation is completely boring. But Tony sees the tension across his shoulders anyway. What a liar.

"Yeah, if you'd just agree to play for the team and get into bed with us, I wouldn't have been stuck with the oldtimers alone and they wouldn't have kicked me out."

"Not really seeing where I fit into this...?"

"Why'd you say they broke up with me?"

Bruce stops, clearly confused and frowning over at Tony. "Isn't that what you said?"

"No. I said _us_. I definitely included you into that package, Banner. I remember it. I said _us_. They broke up with us, not just me. You _and_ me."

"I wasn't dating them," Bruce answers, as if that's obvious.

"Nobody kisses anyone like you kissed Steve that night. I was watching, even if Barnes had his hands down my pants. Well, hand. The fleshy one. I'm not letting him use the metal near my junk until I know he can pick fruit with it."

"Tony..."

"No. I'm not letting this go, so just tell me. And be honest because you're a shit liar."

Bruce presses his lips together, a tight line. Tony can read his thoughts, the 'I'm a better liar than you think' is so loud even if it's unspoken.

"Why does this even matter? You know how I feel about this."

"Tell me. Because I don't. I really don't."

Without warning, Bruce moves, scarily fast and backs Tony up against the desk, getting into his space. His eyes are brown, but that makes Tony more nervous than if he'd seen green.

"Don't ask this." Bruce is staring at him, breathing a little too quick and Tony takes it all as a sign to just keep pushing. He places his hands on Bruce's hips, pulling him forward so he loses control of the situation.

"I know that I'm the only one you let touch you like this. I'm the only one that you trust. I get that. I know what it means, how that translates in your little green brain. I get it, Bruce. But what I don't get, is why out of nowhere I see you staring at Rogers like he's the answer to the fucking universe. I know how that feels, I know how it much it sucks to be staring at his ass and looking for sunbeams. But why'm I seeing you staring at him like that? And why, after he kisses you and you /kiss back/ as if it's something you want, you pretend like you didn't get half hard from that tongue fuck and you hide away or run off?"

"Jesus, Tony. Do you have to be so--"

"Answer it, Banner."

Bruce is upset, his face trying to twist itself into the emotion but his control stopping it dead. Tony's chest aches.

"I don't want Steve like I want you--"

"I'm flattered."

"--because it's not the same thing." Bruce's fingers are twitching, or trembling. Tony doesn't want to check. "He's safe." Bruce finishes, not meeting his gaze.

"I'm not? Because you know I'm clean. Pep makes sure I have weekly checks."

"Not what I'm getting at, Tony."

Tony drops his hands away, folds them across his chest instead, needing the barrier. It's just a night full of bullshit apparently.

"So, what, you don't feel safe with me? Is that what you're saying?"

"Yes. That's...that's it exactly."

"Fuck you, Banner."

Bruce stays silent.

"No, you know what? That's bullshit and you know it. The only one who can actually match you would be Thor and he doesn't even land a hit unless he's throwing his pseudo-dick arou--oh. You. Shit."

Bruce takes a step back, shoulders hunching and no, Tony is not letting this drop. He reaches out and hooks fingers into the waistband of Bruce's pants, keeping him close.

"You and Barnes need to start a damn club with your issues. Bruce, Steve is not here to be your sadist to your masochist. You think, what, he's safer because he could physically hurt you but not hit you where it counts? Because let me tell you, Steve has a way of getting under your skin and pissing on those wounds you don't even know you have. He's the last person I'd trust."

"Didn't you say something about blowjobs being marriages?"

Tony leans in and kisses him, wrapping a hand around the back of Bruce's neck to keep him still. Bruce is nothing but tension, but gradually the kiss relaxes him, has him kissing back gently like he expects Tony to back away any second. Tony keeps it up until he can't breathe and only then does he pull away, licking his lips.

"You know, if you tell me to stop chasing after them, I'd try."

"I know," Bruce says quietly. And Tony knows he won't ask.

\--

"This is a fuckin mess," Bucky complains, back up against the wall and watching Bruce warily. Bruce, for his part, is on his knees on the opposite side of the room, holding his middle and gulping in huge intakes of oxygen. He's naked, dirty from the fall and shivering so hard it makes Bucky want to wince. The sudden transformation from green to pale skin had been a shock, but Bucky had spotted the dart in Hulk's neck just before he crashed them both through the roof and landed them here. Bruce hasn't spoken a word since the change but Bucky suspects that's got more to do with the obviously painful looking reaction to the drug.

He strips off his uniform and pulls off his undershirt, bundles it up into a ball and then throws it in Bruce's direction. From what he's seen, he thinks it's better to keep his distance and not crowd Bruce. Just because he's kissed the guy once when he's been wasted doesn't mean they're best friends. Even if their respective partners occasionally fuck each other. What a huge fucking mess.

Bruce tries to reach for the shirt but either movement hurts too much or he's afraid of something else, because he ends up curling up more into himself. Bucky has a voice in his head that sounds suspiciously like Steve and with a sigh, he crosses the room and takes the shirt. The sparking overhead light casts strange shadows on Bruce's skin, but Bucky can't see any wounds this close. He figures it must be internal pain. Bucky reaches out with his metal arm, the cold hand curling around Bruce's bicep. He figures he'd rather lose the more replaceable limb if Bruce has a bit of green in him still.

Surprisingly, it's the warm hand touching Bruce's skin that makes him flinch and for a moment, Bucky weighs that information in his mind. The metal hand is safe, the human hand isn't. Bucky swallows, ducking his head to search Bruce's face.

"Hey, doc? Gonna help you put this shirt on. I know it ain't pants but I'm attached to my own."

Bruce nods, a jerky motion and Bucky sees a flash of lit up green eyes. It's disturbing. Would be more disturbing if he hadn't seen weirder things in life. He unrolls the shirt out and helps slip it over Bruce's head, working his arms carefully through the holes and tugging it down over his torso. It reminds him of dressing Steve when he'd been stick thin and frail and hacking up a lung. Without meaning to, he cards a hand through Bruce's hair, caught in the whirl of memory. Bruce's flinch brings him back to the present but on a whim, he repeats the action with his other hand, the metallic one, and Bruce closes his eyes, breathing out slowly.

Huh.

"You need to get out," Bruce rasps out, his voice odd and strained.

"Not gonna happen. The only way is up and I can't fly."

"The drug is wearing off, I can't hold him back."

"Well, let's try our chances then."

Bruce's laugh is weak and breathless. "Sound like Tony."

"Well fuck if my worst nightmare is comin' true."

"I'm sorry, I r-really can't..."

"Hey," Bucky interrupts, and this is definitely the voice he's used on Steve more than once. It gets Bruce to look at him, those green eyes glowing. "We're a team aren't we? This isn't every man for himself. So c'mon, focus on me. Stark says you can control him. He trusts you."

"Tony's an idiot."

"Not gonna argue with you on that." Bucky finds himself smiling a little. "How's that work out anyway? You and Stark. He's a pain in the ass even if he does have an amazing mouth. Or is that all it is with you guys?"

Bruce shudders but doesn't change, just slumps some more and leans against the wall. "We don't. It's...not like t-that."

Bucky doesn't follow. "You don't? No need to be shy, doc, but c'mon. This is Tony Stark. If there's one thing I've learned that hasn't changed from the past, it's that the Starks are known for what they do in bed."

"We don't," Bruce repeats, his voice sounding steadier. "I don't let him. It's...complicated."

"Not even once?" At Bruce's silence, Bucky whistles quietly. "Well, I guess that explains why he sniffs around Steve."

"He admires Steve," Bruce says quietly and Bucky's gaze snaps to Bruce's face. "He just doesn't like to admit it."

Bucky doesn't like that, the thought that someone might take Steve from him. That someone could love Steve without ever having lived half their lives with Steve like he did. Sometimes it hurts to watch Tony and Steve work together with one mind out on the battlefield. He used to be the one Steve would turn to but now it's Tony.

"He should keep his hands to himself," Bucky mutters.

"I'm sorry too. I--oh god, I c-can't, it's--"

"No, hey, no can do. Stay with me." He remembers to use the metal hand this time and cups Bruce's face to keep eye contact. Bruce's eyes are so green, too green. "I'm not going to let it take over. You're the one in control. Remember that." Because he knows a little something about the darkness that takes over and if he'd clung to memories of Steve for this long and not let go, he could stop Bruce from letting go. Maybe.

He's not sure how long he stays there, keeping Bruce with him and using tricks he's used on himself to keep the Other Guy back. But he hears Stark calling, his voice mechanical and without emotion through the suit.

"Down here!"

Tony lands, the visor sliding up, his eyes darting between the two. His gauntlet hand lands on Bruce's shoulder and Bucky sees Bruce lean into it.

It's embarrassing that it takes so long for him to realize why Bruce didn't flinch with the metal hand.

"Can't keep him back, need you guys to go."

Tony nods, turns to Bucky and grabs up with one arm before flying them up and out through the broken room.

"The fuck, Stark? You can't leave him down there!"

"I'm going back for him, Barnes. Go play backup to Cap."

Bucky stumbles only slightly when Tony drops him closer to the ground, watching the red and gold suit go back the way they came. He takes another second just to compose himself before running across the battlefield to find Steve.

\--

Steve sketches Bucky quietly, forgetting to turn one arm into the robotic limb it is. Bucky watches the pencil lines with a blank look on his face. Steve worries his bottom lip.

"I'm sorry," Steve murmurs, erasing the lines to start again. It had been habit to work from memory instead of reality.

"It's okay. I still look at you and remember how you used to be."

"I'll always be that kid to you, huh?"

Bucky's smile is brittle looking. "Yeah, always."

Steve keeps the arm erased, draws Bucky how he looks without the prosthetic on. It's a compromise.

\--

"I think I should go. I've stayed here long enough and I don't want to be a liability to anyone."

"You're not leaving."

"I have to."

"Bruce? Seriously. Don't go."

\--

Tony is used to seeing that haunted look on Bruce's face, so it throws him when it's Bucky walking into the kitchen with that same expression. There is no escaping nightmares.

He offers Bucky the chance to spar.

Bucky declines. "How bout I teach you to win a fight?"

Tony just smirks. "You're on."

\--

Bruce stares at Tony, eyes wide with fear and his body tense from head to toe.

"Relax."

"That's really asking too much of me right now."

The arc reactor is bright, draws shadows over Tony's face and Bruce still keeps his body locked tight. Tony shifts closer on the bed until their knees bump, their noses almost brushing.

"You know I designed this room to monitor everything. Ten alarms are going to go off the moment you trip the first. If that doesn't wake me up then Cap kicking down the door will. It'll be fine, Banner. Just relax."

"I wish you'd wear the suit."

"Haven't designed a suit that works as pyjamas yet so you're out of luck."

"I can't control him at all when I'm asleep. One bad dream and I'm trapped in the backseat."

"Let me give you something better to dream about."

"I bet you've used that line before."

Tony slides a hand slowly down Bruce's body. "Yeah, but this is the first time I've actually meant it."

"You're impossi--Tony! This is a really, really bad idea."

"I'm good with bad ideas. It's sort of my thing. Keep your eyes on mine, remember to breathe and feel free to hold your arms in the air."

Bruce laces their fingers together, controlling Tony's hand.

"Or that," Tony adds, eyes going dark. "That works too."

\--

Steve camps out with a bedroll, looking more fit for the wilderness than Tony's bedroom floor. Tony peers over the bedside to look down at him. Steve just grins back.

"Is this going to happen every time your girlfriend is off on SHIELD duty?" Tony asks with a drawl.

Utterly serene, Steve just pats his pillow down and prepares for sleep. "Goodnight Bruce. Tony."

Tony rolls his eyes, reaches behind himself to grab Bruce's arm and pulls it over his body. He keeps his eyes on Steve's.

Steve draws the scene from memory later for Bucky.

\--

"Problem with the beds, fellas?"

"Heard your carpet was made from Egyptian cotton, Stark. Had to check it out for myself."

"I hope you don't mind."

"Jesus, Steve. Why would I mind if two grandpas want to sleep on my floor? It's not weird _at all_. Just don't put up a damn tent. Bruce, get in here already."

"I really think I should g--"

"Don't you dare leave me with these two, Banner."

"Hey!"

"C'mon Buck, leave him be. We are taking up his floor. And Bruce, if you want us to leave, we can go."

"No it's...it's fine..."

\--

Bruce and Bucky are in the middle, Steve and Tony on the outside. Nobody sleeps the first night, but Bucky's metal arm curls around Bruce's hip and Tony's arc reactor is covered by Bruce's back and Steve holds onto Bucky tightly as if to never let him go.

And it works. Eventually.


End file.
